If the prelates attending the Vatican’s Synod of Bishops for the Amazon ask that Pope Francis allow married priests to address a lack of Catholic ministers across the nine-nation region, the path for implementing such a proposal is fairly straightforward, say four eminent canon lawyers. Although the canonists have slightly different ideas about the concrete Read more
One Venezuelan prelate taking part in the current Synod of Bishops on the Amazon says people back home have a creative alternative for coping with chronic priest shortages, beyond the much-discussed idea of married clergy to serve isolated rural communities. Rather than ordaining married men, he said, their proposal is that he bring some of Read more
At dusk in this small indigenous village, Antelmo Pereira calls local Catholics to prayer, changes into a white robe and leads a religious service that is the closest thing the faithful in this remote part of the Amazon can get to a proper Mass. Speaking in the indigenous Ticuna language, he leads a recital of Read more
At the opening Mass of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon region on Sunday the Pope Francis appealed to conservatives not to be bound by the status quo. The synod’s purpose will be to discuss the future of the Church in the Amazon. These discussions will include the possibility of married priests. Most of Read more
With the upcoming Amazon Synod, some people are only focused on whether it will recommend that the priesthood be opened to the ordination of married men, but there is a lot more at stake. True, the synod will discuss the possibility of ordaining married men because there is a shortage of priests to serve such Read more
A married man with six children has just been ordained as a Latin-rite (Roman Catholic) priest in Montreal. Robert Assaly (59) was ordained by Archbishop Christian Lépine last Sunday after 10 years’ preparation. His wife Nancy and children assisted with the Mass. Assaly and his wife were formally admitted into the Catholic Church in 2015, Read more
The Roman Catholic church should reconsider if it thinks the priest shortage can be solved by letting priests marry. It hasn’t solved the problem in the Ukranian Greek Catholic Rite which allows priests to be married, says Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk. Shevchuk is the Major Archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. He was responding to Read more
In the sprawling Amazon region, the Catholic Church is severely short on priests. Clerics trek from one town to the next, sometimes requiring military transport to get to their remote destinations. Communities can go months without a visit. The church, as a result, is struggling to hold its influence. One new proposal to ease the Read more
The Vatican has officially thrown open the question of the Catholic Church ordaining married men. It is the most direct mention ever by the Vatican of the possibility of married priests. The proposal, released around 10 pm Monday, NZ time, comes in a working document prepared for the Synod of Bishops in the Pan-Amazon. In Read more
Another wide-ranging and frank press conference with Pope Francis on his flight home from World Youth Day in Panama raised a number of questions for reporters—and resulted in some wildly divergent headlines. Among the confused questions: Is Pope Francis open to married priests? Is he committed to maintaining celibacy for priests? Will men who are Read more